The suite had two master bedrooms with attached private bathrooms, a large living space, and a balcony. They were on the tenth floor of a well-known hotel chain. Mandy had kept her chin tucked as they’d checked in and taken the elevator to their floor.
Pest dropped his bag inside the door, addressing his brother.
“I’m going to go eat a real meal in the restaurant, have a beer, and maybe get laid. I’ll take my time, since you have a promise to keep.” He pointed at Glacier. “Make damn certain the bond is strong. We don’t need your girl drawing Lycans to us on the road tomorrow like the Pied Piper of pussy.”
“Excuse me?” Mandy gaped at Pest.
“It’s not a given that she’ll react that way. We’re in uncharted territory,” Glacier responded.
“True enough, but it’s best to be prepared in case it does happen. Tell her about the calling.” Pest left the suite, closing the door after him.
Mandy turned to Glacier, arching her eyebrows.
“It’s a weird Gargoyle thing, because my kind tend to be thickheaded and emotionally remote. It’s possible that you may put off ‘fuck me’ pheromones that any man will respond to. Lycans are especially susceptible, since they have the best sense of smell. Think of a Lycan woman in heat, times ten. It makes Lycan men lose their damn minds and go into a frenzy unless they’re already mated. Even close proximity to humans, despite their duller senses, will make them horny.”
She felt a little stunned, yet again.
“It’s true. It’s why it’s called the calling. Your body will make sure a Gargoyle wants to fuck you to seal the bond all the way, to make it strong. The good news is, we get to fuck like bunnies tonight to make sure you’re properly claimed.” He grinned. “I’m not going to complain about that. Are you?”
She grinned back. “I’ve seen bunnies fuck. So, you plan to furiously hump me and finish in about twenty seconds?”
He put down the pack he held and lunged.
She laughed as he lifted her, tossing her over his shoulder and walking into one of the bedrooms. He used his boot to close the door. “Maybe not like rabbits, but we’re not getting much sleep tonight. I know you have to be exhausted.”
“I’m doing good, and I suddenly feel very awake.”
He bent, easing her onto her feet next to the bed. “Strip, baby. I’ll be right back.” He left her and entered the bathroom, closing the door.
Mandy kicked off her shoes and removed her clothes, noticing the pinkness had faded already from where the sun had touched her. The toilet flushed in the other room and water ran. She pulled back the covers, climbing into bed. Both excitement and nerves filled her.
She knew Lycans took mates, and it seemed Gargoyles did as well. But she’d never thought she’d become a mate. Companion to a Vampire wasn’t nearly as intense. They agreed to live together, set rules to abide by, but could always part ways if it didn’t work out. That wasn’t the case with mates. It would be a bond forever, only to be broken with death, from what she understood.
It was tempting to shower. The smell of her hair bothered her, along with the makeup. She jumped out of bed just as the door to the bathroom opened.
Glacier’s cool blue eyes roamed down her body and he reached for the front of his jeans. “You’re so sexy.”
“I want a shower first. I smell.”
“I don’t give a damn. We’re bonding first. We’ll shower later.”
“I reek, Glacier. Even I can’t stand it. Wearing the helmet didn’t exactly air out this hair color stuff.”
He opened his pants, bent and tore off his boots, then his socks. He straightened, shoving his pants off. The shirt went last. She stared at his body. He had an amazing one. Muscular and cut. His cock was thick and hard.
He smiled. “Get back on the bed unless you’d like me to take you standing.” He strode to her. “We’re mating.”
“What does that entail? You need to bite me, right? We have to exchange blood?”
“I need to flux and bite you during sex. It will trigger mating in a Gargoyle.”
She frowned. “Flux?”
“I need to partially shift. Wings out, my skin very lightly shelled. I’ll drink your blood while I’m fucking you. It will trigger me to secrete hormones that I release into you with my sperm. That will mate us. Do you understand?”
She really didn’t, but she thought she got the gist. “Has someone like you ever mated to a Vampire before?”
“Not that I’m aware of. That’s not saying it hasn’t happened, but no one wrote about it in our history books we have at the cliffs. You’ll be my mate though, regardless of whether your body reacts the way other women’s do to mating.”
“What happens normally?”
“The calling, if we don’t bond strongly. If we do, I’ll be able to track you anywhere you go. It’s a mate thing. My instincts will lead me to you.”
“Like a homing device or something?”
He stopped in front of her but didn’t touch. “Yes.”
“What about me? Will I be able to sense and track you?”
“That’s a Gargoyle thing, so I doubt it. But regardless of our physical responses to this mating, you’re mine, Mandy. Make the commitment to me. Say you’ll be my other half.”
She reached up and pressed her hands to his chest. “I can’t have babies. You’ll be giving up becoming a father.”
He didn’t flinch or react in any way. “I’m aware.”
“Mating is for life with you, right? You’re half Werewolf.”
“We like the term Lycan better. Yes, this is for life, Mandy. I’m never going to let you go. I don’t give a damn about having kids. One day, if that ever changes, we’ll figure it out.”
“Can your blood change mine enough to make me fertile?”
“No, baby. There would have been warnings written about it. I’m certain that’s impossible. I’m sorry if you were hopeful. Walking in the sun without burning is the best I can give you.”
“That’s not true. You’re offering me the world. I just wish I could feel as though I’m giving you the same. Instead, I’m cursing you to a life without having a family.”
He moved, sat on the bed, and hooked her waist. He pulled her onto his lap and held her there. “I already have a family. My father got my mother pregnant four times with his sperm. He was a shit dad. I won’t go into all the details, but let’s just say when my youngest brother had to kill him, it was warranted and approved by the rest of us. Emphasis on the had to kill him. Father left Creed with no choice.
“My mother is dead because she was a Lycan mated to a coldhearted bastard who never loved her. He didn’t give a damn that he slowly killed her with his absolute neglect of her emotional needs.
“The point is, they had a family, and look how bad that turned out. One day, if we want kids, we can adopt. I’ve come across plenty of orphans, both human and Lycan, who I helped find homes for after shit hit the fan in their lives. Other guardians have experienced the same tragedies and dealt with the survivors. I can put word out to my clan, and even to the VampLycans, if we’re ever ready to raise a child. We won’t be able to pick the race or sex, but I don’t give a damn. A child in need of love is all that matters. But right now, I just want you. Let’s worry about the future later.”
He never ceased amazing and stunning her.
“What other roadblocks do you want to throw up? Go ahead. I’ll tell you how we get around them. Bottom line, we’ll work it out. That’s what mates do.”
She slid her hands into his hair…and leaned close to kiss him for the first time.
He met her lips with his. A soft growl came from his throat as their mouths merged. She knew her fangs slid out, but he had some too. Bigger, more vicious. It made kissing momentarily difficult, but she tilted her head a little more and he was right…they could work things out.
Her GarLycan could kiss.
He turned, flipping her onto her back, and came down on top of her on the bed. She parted her thighs to make room for his hips. He moved into position, rocking his stiff cock against her pussy. Desire and need rose stronger until she moaned and released his hair, clawing at his back. She spread her legs wider, wrapping them around his hips.
He broke the kiss. “Slow down, baby.”
She loved the husky, rough edge to his voice. “Rabbits, remember? Just last more than twenty seconds. I want you inside me.”
He nudged her face with his and she exposed her throat. The thought of him biting didn’t frighten her in the least. It excited her more. She’d heal regardless of what his big fangs did to her. She also trusted him not to hurt her. He needed to drink some of her blood, but he’d probably only nick her.
He reached up and offered his wrist.
“Bite, baby.”
She hesitated.
He didn’t. He licked her throat, placing hot, wet kisses on her flesh, and then his fangs sank into her skin.
She latched onto his wrist, grabbing hold of it to keep it against her mouth while she drank from him. Glacier’s fangs left her skin but he continued to suck from her. She moaned louder, grinding her pussy against his cock.
He adjusted his hips and entered her deep in one thrust. Pain and pleasure blurred but it didn’t matter. He fucked her hard and fast. The bed creaked but she barely registered the sound, too lost in bloodlust and ecstasy. Her climax built as he pounded into her harder, and he suddenly yanked his wrist from her mouth. She wanted to protest, until she realized his wrist, still in her hand, didn’t feel as it should.
Mandy opened her eyes, staring at his skin, still so close to her mouth. It had turned gray, and his wings were spread out over them, blanketing the bed around them. They were black and beautiful.
She released his wrist and reached out to them, running her fingertips along the velvety surface that hardened as she stroked it.
Glacier snarled and fucked her violently, sending her over the edge. She cried out his name as her climax struck. She forgot about his wings, or that he’d partially shelled while inside her, on top of her. Mandy closed her eyes to ride it through as he extended her pleasure and continued fucking her.
Finally, he tensed, bucked his hips, and groaned her name.
His hips jerked with every stream of semen he shot into her. Their bodies felt fused together. He had her pinned tight to the bed under him, his wings all around them, and she clung to him. He stilled his hips finally, breathing hard.
“Fuck. Was I too rough?”
She smiled. “I loved that.”
“I put a new spin on rock hard, don’t I?”
She ran her fingers over his skin. It was soft and supple again. No longer that odd texture. “I have no complaints.”
“Just for tonight, if I offer you some blood, take it fast. I damn near fluxed while your fangs were still in my skin.”
She let that meaning behind that concept sink in. “Shit.”
“Yeah. It could have been bad.”
“Has that ever, um, happened?”
“Once.” He lifted up a bit.
Her gaze met his. “Will you tell me about it?”
“Some bastard surprised me in a club. He dropped down on me like a spider from the ceiling before I ever heard or scented him. He sank his fangs into my shoulder. I shelled instantly and then flung him off me. The fangs stayed put. He didn’t.”
She flinched.
“Yeah. My skin locked his fangs in place. It tore the fuckers right out. He was still screaming from the pain and shock while I removed his head. He was a bad guy who had to die anyway, since I wasn’t sure if he’d managed to drink some of my blood before I reacted. I unshelled and pulled his fangs out. It seems they don’t ash if they’ve been removed from a Vamp first. I gave them as a gift to the Lycan woman he’d kidnapped.”
She got past her trauma of the idea of having her fangs ripped out. It would be an agonizingly slow death. She’d be unable to feed without them and starve over time. Fangs didn’t grow back. “Why did he kidnap a Werewolf woman?”
“He wanted to breed her. It’s against the law for anyone to create a VampLycan without permission.”
“Had he succeeded?”
“No. I was called in after he’d attempted to steal a few women from a pack in Georgia. They had managed to fight him off. I was already in town when he actually grabbed one. I tracked her scent to where he had her locked up. She had a strong mind, he hadn’t been able to tear into it yet. With time he could have, but I located her too fast.”
“Why did he want to do that?”
He shrugged. “Who the fuck knows? I didn’t exactly give a shit. He died and the problem was resolved. The Lycan woman returned to her family with his fangs as a souvenir of her ordeal.” He adjusted his body over hers, kissing her lips. “No more talking. We’re bonding, baby. You ready to go again? Because I am.”
He was still inside her, still hard, and began to slowly rock his hips. She kissed him back, closing her eyes. It seemed GarLycans didn’t need recovery time the way human men did. She was totally onboard with that.
* * * * *
Glacier ordered room service and met the waiter at the door before he could knock and wake his mate. Mandy slept after the hours they’d spent making love, finally giving in to her exhaustion. Vampires weren’t like GarLycans. They needed daily sleep, something she’d been denied while they traveled on his motorcycle. He paid in cash and tipped the human.
He sat at the table, scarfing down food, and texted Pest. His brother responded that he’d return to the room soon. He called Creed next, not worried about the fact that it was the middle of the night. His youngest brother answered immediately.
“Are you safe with your mate?”
“Yes. I take it Kelzeb filled you in?”
“He did. A Vampire.” Creed chuckled. “You always were ballsy and not one to follow the norm. I’m putting you on speaker. I’m with Neb.”
That surprised him. “What is Neb doing in Alaska?”
“I’m not,” Neb responded. “Creed came to me. He grabbed a flight from Anchorage to Seattle yesterday, and then took another flight to meet up with me last night. We’re currently driving through Utah toward the borders of Colorado and Wyoming. That’s where Kelzeb said you’re aiming for, last you spoke to him. We were just waiting for you to call in. Where are you?”
“Arizona. Turn toward us.” He gave them the city and hotel. “We put in some hours yesterday and a lot of miles, but we had to stop before the sun went down. That asshole Kevin put a tracker on my bike, but we found it right after we crossed the border out of New Mexico.”
“Do you think he’s planning on attacking you?” Neb paused. “Get me directions, Creed.”
“I’m looking at the map. It’s about a six-hour drive from here but with you behind the wheel, we can be there in five or less.”
“We could abandon the rental and fly. It’s faster.”
Creed hesitated. “No, Neb. We wouldn’t make it in time before the sun crests. Even at top speed, we’d fall short of reaching them. We’re trapped in this car with your lead foot. It’s amazing we haven’t been pulled over. You’re doing a hundred and ten miles an hour.”
“There isn’t shit out here. Do you see many other cars at this time on the freeway? No, you don’t.”
“It’s called an interstate. So much for you being the older, wiser brother.”
Glacier sipped his drink and grinned, listening to his brothers rib each other. A road trip with both of them sealed inside a vehicle together sounded hellish. “We’ll stay here until you arrive. As for the question you asked, Kevin hasn’t sent someone after us so far. It’s looking like he put a tracker on my bike to make certain I left his territory. We’re staying on alert just in case.” He gave them the room number right as the door opened, admitting Pest into the suite. He motioned him to take a seat since he’d ordered a few meals.
“We’re on our way.” Creed ended the call.
Pest sat at the table and inhaled. “Smells like you bonded to your mate a lot. Good.”
“Keep your voice down. Mandy fell asleep.”
“Vampires usually do that during the day.”
“She couldn’t yesterday. She’s wiped out. Creed and Neb are six hours out from us. According to Creed, they can make it in five with the way Neb drives.”
Surprise flickered across Pest’s features. “Shit. I guess I should have answered when both of them called me, but I just figured they wanted the details on you and short stack. That’s your situation to explain to them.”
“Would it kill you to call her Mandy? She’s my mate.”
“She’s adjusting to my nickname. It’s as cute as she is. I’m not picking up the calling. At least, I don’t have a boner.”
“Don’t be an ass.”
“I’m being honest. You either sealed the bond or she’s not going to suffer the effects of mating you by putting out pheromones. What do you think? Did you do the deed enough to avoid it or is it because she’s a Vamp?”
“I don’t know. This is the first time I’ve taken a mate.”
“No shit.” Pest unwrapped his napkin and dug into the nearest plate. “Spaghetti with meatballs. My favorite.”
“I ordered for both of us.”
“That’s got to be weird.”
“What?”
“Having a mate you’ll never share dinner with. Or should I say a very early breakfast, considering the time.”
Glacier frowned. “It doesn’t matter.”
Pest shrugged. “Think of all the money you’ll save over the years. No date nights at fancy restaurants to impress her. Your food bills won’t increase unless you need to eat more to keep your blood levels up after you give her a vein.”
Glacier flipped him off. “Where have you been?”
“I hung out at the bar until closing to keep an eye on the lobby. No Lycans have shown. Then I took the hot server to another room I rented on the third floor with a view of the parking lot. I banged her against the damn window. She didn’t seem to mind. I got to nail her while keeping guard. I doubt the Lycans would use valet parking the way we did.” He winked. “I had just showered and gotten her out of there when you’d texted me. I had planned to stay there in case any of Kevin’s pack arrived. I’m disappointed they haven’t.”
“Why the hell did they put a tracker on my bike if they didn’t plan to come after me?”
“To be assholes? Maybe he just wanted to make certain you left his territory by keeping tabs on where you headed. Who knows? He wasn’t the brightest bulb on the tree.”
Glacier nodded, taking a bite of food. “Maybe.”
“Has he called you?”
“Six times. No messages or texts. He hangs up when I don’t answer.”
“I bet he was pissed when he sent his enforcers into that shop, only to discover ashes in the basement.”
“I just hope they bought it was Mandy and don’t suspect anything.”
“Who the fuck would think the woman who walked out with us was a Vampire? There was direct sunlight streaming overhead as she stood there getting on the bike with you. They watched us drive away. She didn’t turn to ashes. He’ll believe she was one of ours.”
Glacier hoped so. “The council needs to be dealt with.”
“I was thinking about that as well. If that master was being protected by someone on their council, they aren’t going to be pleased when they learn of his death. It would be stupid of them to send more assassins after the Lycans. It’s possible they might though.”
“I’m not willing to risk it. I hate Kevin, but his pack shouldn’t have to pay with loss of lives because he’s an idiot.”
“I concur. We’ll wait for our brothers to arrive and make a trip tonight.”
“Where? We don’t know how to get ahold of their council.”
“No, but you said there was another assassin in Kevin’s town.”
Glacier nodded. “Olivia, Mandy’s friend. She may have fled if she found Mandy’s tracker with the ashes in the alley.”
“You said they’re friends. Would you just walk away if your friend got killed, or would you stick around trying to find the bastard responsible?”
“Point made. Unless she was ordered to leave.”
“We can be hopeful that this Olivia hung around and we find her. She’ll have a number for the council.”
“I don’t want her hurt. It would be painful for Mandy.”
“Un-fucking-believable.”
Glacier held his brother’s gaze. “What?”
“Before now, we’d have killed this Vamp just because she’s an assassin for the council. Now you’re all kittens and puppy dogs, sweet on your mate, and you want to spare her friend’s life. Assassins are killers, Glacier.”
“So are we. It doesn’t mean we do it for kicks. Olivia was left with no choice but to work for the council. Same with Mandy. They’re servants led by their masters and refusal means death. Let’s see if we can track Olivia and reach out to the council to send them a message. We’ll say we kept her alive as a good-faith gesture.”
Pest sighed. “Fine. What about short stack? Do we leave her here on her own? Is she safe? I hate the idea of flying hours away, possibly having to spend a whole day away from her, and her being left undefended.”
“I’ll ask Creed to stay with her. The three of us can handle the damn Vampire Council.”
“You chose him because he’s mated, didn’t you?” Pest grinned. “Instincts are a bitch.”
“Fuck you.”
“I wouldn’t hit on your mate. I can be a dick but not that much of one. You know me better than that.”
“I didn’t say you would. I know you have honor.”
“I do, but I agree. Creed is the best choice to play guard.”